Digital Comic

Overwatch is one of the most hyped games I’ve seen in a while. Every outlet, which reviews video games is giving this one perfect scores. I must admit, I too am taken by the art style, characters and animated shorts that make up the Overwatch “Universe”, but the game is far from perfect! While I normally do review video games on this blog, this heavily super-hero inspired game, definitely, is in my wheelhouse!

I like, like everyone, was introduced to the concept of Overwatch with their first animated teaser, featuring characters Tracer and Winston battling Reaper and Widowmaker in a museum. Upon seeing this trailer, I was hooked: I wanted the comic, movie, action figures, Heroclix, and animated series right then! It would take about a year for more animated shorts to come out and Blizzard, the company which created the game/IP, also created 6 digital comics, which you can read and download, for free, from their website. The link to watch or read is here.

In May of the year, the game was released and it was..is a smash success! As I previously stated, every gaming outlet is reviewing the game as perfect or near perfect, which it is far from. Now to be honest, competitive first-person shooters aren’t my… “thing”! I’ve never excelled at them! I also don’t play MOBAs or MMOs, so forcing me to group up with strangers is also something I’m not used to, and while I know a huge demographic love this style of game play, I find it very repetitive and very boring! I love these characters and want to learn more about them and their world, but I don’t enjoy the game, and that’s my issue…there is no story in Overwatch! You learn nothing about the world or the characters in all the time you waste leveling up to earn useless, random loot. On top of that, this game is a “full priced” release on the consoles, at $60, and slightly cheaper on PC, at $40, provided you go for the base edition, WITH MICRO TRANSACTIONS! That is insulting! If you’re going to make me pay for the game, then give me everything up front. If this game was free to play, I wouldn’t complain about the very slow leveling and random loot drops, because that’s the price I pay for playing for free. Also, would it have killed them to add couch co-op, or a special couch co-op mode for the console versions. I want to play with my ACTUAL friends! I can deal with no couch co-op, but what really bothers me is no story campaign mode. This is 2016 and we can’t even get a solo campaign, which tells you the story and teaches you about each of the characters. Injustice: Gods Among Us has a fantastic story mode and it’s a fighting game…yes, A FIGHTING GAME!

All-in-all, this title is far from perfect! Everyone gave Star Wars Battlefront hell for not having a story mode and being too repetitive, but because it’s Blizzard, who only release games when the planets align, they get a pass. Because Blizzard puts time… quality time in their animated shorts, comics, art and characters, we can forgive a few missing modes and micro transactions…NO, ABSOLUTELY NOT! I love Blizzard as much as the next video game fan. While I’m not into Starcraft or World of Warcraft, I do love the Diablo series and in particular, Diablo 3, and I see how much is in that game and it makes me wonder, if Overwatch should have been delayed a bit longer to flesh out it’s offerings and make it a complete, “full priced” game! Right now, for me, it’s not Overwatch…it’s Overhype!

After halting an alien invasion, Superman spends time with Wonder Woman as she performs duties, heroic, professional and personal. Superman witnesses Wonder Woman stop a war without ever throwing a punch, officiate a lesbian wedding, and destroy a dam erected by a previous regime that is halting the growth of crops and livestock. Spending the day with Wonder Woman, Superman feels both sadness and joy, as he’s never had an equally powered friend to play with as a kid or any siblings, so she’s the closest thing to a sister that he has. He also thinks he should do more to help the world, because Wonder Woman is always active. However, Wonder Woman tells Superman that he has one thing over her, his ability to inspire people with his writing, and as Clark Kent, he can do more good than probably he could ever do as Superman.

A really great issue of Sensation Comics, where we get a guest appearance by Superman. We get to live through a normal day in the life of Wonder Woman along with Superman and learn about everything that Wonder Woman does for the world. I really enjoyed the touching moment that she shared with Superman and her words of inspiration to him about his identity and what he does with his down time. I also really enjoyed how we got to see the “boring” stuff that Wonder Woman does and the alien invasion was wrapped up before the issue every began. A great story with equally great art, this digital issue is…

In ‘Besties‘, Wonder Woman befriends three young girls who are running along the beach. One of the girls is training for a competition and Wonder Woman arrives and beats the girl, trying to teach them all to be who they are and to never give up the fight, even against insurmountable odds. While chatting with the girls, Super-Woman arrives, somehow free and in our dimension and battles Wonder Woman as the girls watch. The girls show courage and quick thinking, while Wonder Woman uses what she’s just taught the girls about never backing down and never surrendering!

Another great story from Sensation Comics! I really still love this continuity-free series, which gives us Wonder Woman stories from creators, young and old, male and female, known and unknown! Seeing Super-Woman, Wonder Woman’s counterpart from an alternate Earth, where the Justice League are the villains, was unexpected, but proved to be a ‘wonderful’ surprise! Another great Wonder Woman tale, which features a good story with good art, and, like most issues in this series, is …

Wonder Woman must play diplomat to stop two nations from going to war. When the goddess Strife shows up, her opposite half, Eris, takes control and uses a recently discovered oil deposit on the border of the two nations to create some real life strife. Through the help of Mother Night and Strife herself, Wonder Woman is able to see diplomacy through and see that the two nations work together to prosper from the newly discovered oil.

I’ll admit, my synopsis of this story is a little off, because these three issues are a mess! I don’t like the story, but the art is fine. I have no idea who Mother Night is in the Wonder Woman mythology and the Strife that I know looks nothing and acts differently than the Strife in this storyarc. I can’t tell if it’s the main plot of this issue, or the back-and-forth nature of the Strife/Eris interactions, but sometimes I found myself lost while reading this one. I had to reread this one again, but I still somehow think I’ve missed something. I still really love this series and this storyarc is a prime example of how a non-continuity series can give any writer and artist team and chance to tell the Wonder Woman story that they want.

Wonder Woman is called in as a witness for the DA and has to recount her recent encounter with the Cheetah. The Cheetah’s aunt wants to get her niece into a psychiatric hospital, which has lower security than Iron Heights, where she is currently incarcerated. Even after telling the judge about ever detail about the battle and the lives hurt or lost, the judge still sides the with aunt and allows the super-villain to be transferred. Wonder Woman is friends with the Prosecutor, who lost his sister to the Scarecrow, so he wants to help put the villains in the proper facilities and the two follow the armored van taking the Cheetah to the new facility. As they both assumed, the Cheetah escapes and takes her aunt hostage. Wonder Woman tracks them down and stops the Cheetah from killing her aunt, but is unable to bring the villain to her senses. Cheetah is once again taken off to Iron Heights and Wonder Woman wishes that one day, ordinary people won’t have to suffer for the actions of their villains.

A wonderful story, with an odd opening/first issue! I really like how the first issue is mostly a flashback, with Wonder Woman telling the story of her encounter with the Cheetah. The first part of this story contains the bulk of the court drama with the Cheetah’s escape and recapture told in the second part. I liked the art and really enjoyed the story, though I haven’t read a lot of Wonder Woman, and didn’t realize that the Cheetah had multiple personalities, although this could have been embellished for this story, as Sensation Comics is a continuity-free series.

In “Both Ends of the Leash” we see Wonder Woman try to help a man who has raised a lion in a suburban area. He’s trying to “tame” the lion, make it more docile, so as to not scare the neighbors or attack the local children. Wonder Woman can talk to the lion, one of her many blessings, and tells the man a story about her encounter with the lions Patience and Fortitude on Paradise Island. She learned that sometimes it’s better to not attack, not restrain. Wonder Woman promises to help the man find a place for him and his lion.

Another odd issue of Sensation Comics, where we get Wonder Woman helping someone who really needs it. While I can’t say that I’m a fan of this particular issue, I do like how the issue isn’t blatantly “feminist” (not involving a female protagonist, especially one who has to overcome an obstacle because she’s female) and that we get more of a glimpse into Wonder Woman’s past on the Island. While I do like the art in this issue, the story didn’t grab me as many of these issues usually do!

In “A Moment’s Peace”, Diana is reeling from an attack on her city by Doctor Destiny, where he hooked a bunch of people to his brain, in order to feed off their dreams. While there were no casualties, most have slipped into comas, but all will never be the same again. In order to take her mind off of it and get a moments peace. Batman sets her up in a mountain retreat, one that his father used to use when the horrors at the hospital got too much for him. When she arrives, she notices a lot of destruction, but the locals haven’t said a word. One night, she can’t sleep, so the heads into the woods to be alone and comes across the cause of the destruction, Solomon Grundy. She battle the undead villain, able to take out much of her frustration on the thick-skinned zombie. Diana return to the Justice League Watchtower and tells Batman of her weekend, and how Solomon Grundy just happened to be there. Batman says he had no idea that Grundy was on the loose, but was glad that she was there to help. She thanks him and heads out, having cleared her mind and worked through her anger.

A really good, but short Sensation Comics issue! The art is decent, nothing too special but it helps convey the story, which actually have very little dialogue at times. Once again we see Wonder Woman teamed with Batman, as he helps her with her mental stability. A terrific short story, one that is definitely worth your time and money!

“Echidna” sees Wonder Woman in Gotham City searching for missing children. However, these kids are the children of Echidna, a half snake, half woman, Greek monster of legend. Diana’s mission crosses over with that of Batgirl, who is also looking for a missing child, this one of the Gotham DA. The two heroes help each other out and find Batgirl’s missing child, who was taken by Harley Quinn. However, Quinn tells them that she was paid to take the girl and acts as a distraction, while the real men were getting the other children out of Gotham and into the hands of wealthy men who want exotic specimens for their collections. Wonder Woman and Batgirl are able to save Echidna’s children and bring the criminals to justice.

I must admit, this particular story didn’t “jive” with me! I felt it early on, even before we met Echidna and learned about her children. The writing and the art just weren’t there, for me anyway. Once it picks up, the story gets interesting, but the cameo characters never really do much of anything, but show up to be guest stars. Still, it’s a fun read and worth reading, eventually!

In the three-part “Vendetta”, Wonder Woman has found herself caught up in a civil war between the citizens of the African Republic of Itari, where ethnic tensions have lead to war between the majority Uwange and the minority MBindi. Wonder Woman meets up with an old friend, Steve Trevor, because they are both part of a conference of Nations to see the civil war end. A patrol of British soldiers is on their way to protect the conference, having Intel that both sides plan to attack, when they are attacked by war himself, Ares. As Ares battles the last of the British soldiers, their commander, he performs a ritual, which is completed once he kills her, and raises the Spartoi, legendary Greek soldiers that are part monster, part undead. The negotiations start to go sour, but are interrupted by the arrival of Ares and the Spartoi. Wonder Woman tries to seek a peaceful solution to this madness, but Ares’ soldiers attack and she quickly defends herself. When it appears that Ares will not back down, Wonder Woman prepares for war and attacks Ares. The two battle, but Wonder Woman is overcome by the Spartoi. Ares has them hold her, so she can watch him kill this nation and then kill her himself. Steve Trevor and the soldiers help free Wonder Woman, who makes it to the conference, where Ares has headed. Ares sees the peace talks as a sin against him and plans on killing the leaders of both sides, but Wonder Woman shows up and is able to piece Ares with his own spear and then use her lasso to force Ares into stopping this madness. Ares and his soldiers leave and having witnessed all of this destruction, the two opposing leaders finally see that peace is the only option.

Another great story from Sensation Comics, where we see Diana take on the role of both ambassador and warrior, in order to being peace to a war torn nation. I like how the war between the two different sides allows for Ares to come in, as he is the God of War, and he sees the peace talks as a sin to his “teachings”. The story in these issues in good and the art is decent, so like with most of these continuity-free stories, this one is…

Wonder Woman returns home, only to find the island under attack. Reports come in that there’s a creature in the forest, so Wonder Woman and her mother, the Queen of the Amazons, heads off to defeat the beast, only to find that it is Batman villain, Poison Ivy. Ivy was attacked by the Amazons, so she retaliated. Once they smooth out the misunderstanding, Ivy tells them that she was sent by the Green, what Ivy refers to as Mother Earth and the Amazons’ refer to as Gaia, to help stop something. If Gaia/Mother Earth/The Green is sending Ivy to the island, that must mean that Typhon is breaking free of Tartarus. Wonder Woman and Ivy armor up and head down the pit in to Tartarus. Once they get down there, they battle the beast, but he is a god, and they are no match for him. Wonder Woman relates how Zeus originally defeat the creature, by dropping a mountain on him, and the two work together, getting Ivy ahead of Typhon, so she can use her powers to loosen the Earth and bring the mountain down on Typhon. In the end, Wonder Woman and Ivy head off to a reception in their honor and seeing as how she did nothing wrong, Wonder Woman won’t let Batman know where Ivy is.

Another great story from Sensation Comics featuring Wonder Woman, which I’m glad to see isn’t canceled. DC took a couple of weeks off between issue, so I wasn’t sure if this series would return, but I’m glad that it has. This non-continuity series is the only place you’ll see new concepts, such as the Green and the Swamp Thing armor on Ivy and still get Wonder Woman in her classic, Pre-Flashpoint outfit. I love when they team Wonder Woman up with characters you’d never expect, like Poison Ivy, and use monsters and gods from Green myth, which this story has both. A great story with good art, this one is…